Nubia Redmagic 8 Pro Review

Even though it is a niche market, there are some enticing devices that you can find in the gaming phones category. Nubia has rolled out the 8 Pro to update its popular Redmagic line and the device seems to be offering high-end gaming performance, but the price is $649, which puts it in the mid-range.

Design and build

Even before you take the 8 Pro out of its box, it is evident that this is a gaming phone. The packaging has silver livery and techno-style labeling and the inner box has some funky artwork. It is undoubtedly a refreshing change from the usually stark packaging. The device itself is quite neat looking, as it weighs 228g and measures 164 x 7.64 x 8.9mm. This makes the Redmagic 8 Pro a large handset, but not very uncomfortable. There are no curved screens or rounded edges because it has an angular design, making it appear similar to Sony’s Xperia range.

The AMOLED 6.8 inch display has minor bezels around the edges, but the selfie camera as well as the fingerprint sensor is under the screen, which means there is no notch. The fingerprint sensor is a bit of a hit and miss, though. The metal chassis shows it is a gaming device, with either side of the frame boasting fan intake and outlets. The bottom and top of the device has stereo speakers and one edge has 520Hz touch sensitive buttons. A headphone jack is also provided for low latency audio.

The rear panel comes with a matt finish, which makes it easy to grip the Redmagic 8 Pro. The upper section has three cameras, which are raised slightly. There is a USB-C charging port and a 6,000mAh battery, which means you can use the phone for gaming all night.

Screen and speakers

The 6.8inch front panel seems like an edge-to-edge screen due to the thin bezels and have a 20:9 aspect ratio. The display feels really huge, especially in landscape orientation, because the selfie camera is hidden. A 120Hz refresh rate, which can be adjusted as per your preference. It is a colorful, pleasing and smooth display and it also has great touch sensitivity. The twin speakers also deliver some excellent audio, but the placement can be a problem because the speakers are where you grip the phone.

Specs and performance

The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor makes the Redmagic 8 Pro very powerful, especially when it is combined with 256GB UFS 4.0 storage and 12GB LPDDR5X RAM. If you need more power, there is a 16GB/512GB variant also available. Nubia has also added the ICE 11.0 cooling system that has a graphene layer under the display for efficient heat dissipation. There is also a 20,000RPM fan that has outlet and intake valves on the sides of the metal chassis and 10 conductive layers and components.

To put it simply, the device remains cool when you are playing and there is no slowdown or lagging, thanks to the power that Nubia has added.